We all know that ANY hobby can be expensive. I have done cross stitch. One of my projects was a "free" pattern that cost about $60.00 when finished and I still love it. I crochet, and yarn and needles can be expensive. We camp and that can also be expensive. Quilting canand is also expensive. If we are going to justify every thing we do in life by how much it costs us, then we can be very dull unhappy people. At one of the local quilt stores, they kept track of our spending, and while I can say that I was not especially surprised, it was quite a bit. I try and buy on sale whether it is one of the local quilt shops or Joann. And quite frankly for me it is much more about the justifiable pleasure I get in the creative process and not the expense.
My wonderful father used to sum it up this way. You need tools to do any job. Don't scrimp on the tool, because if it is cheap you may have to replace it to finish, and you have just added more to the cost of the job.
Happy quilitng
Susan